Easy preparation of small crystalline PdSn nanoparticles in solution at room temperature.

We describe here a simple protocol yielding small (<2 nm) crystalline PdSn nanoparticles (NPs) along with Pd homologues for sake of comparison. These NPs were obtained an organometallic approach using Pd(dba)·dba (dba = dibenzylideneacetone) in THF with 2 equivalents of tributyltin hydride under 4 bars of H at room temperature. The Pd NP homologues were prepared similarly, using Pd(dba)·dba with 2 equivalents of -octylsilane. These NPs were found to be crystalline and very small with a similar mean size ( 1.5 nm). These NPs were finally used as nanocatalysts in solution for a benchmark Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reaction. The PdSn NPs were found to be more active than Pd NPs analogues, exhibiting remarkable performances with Pd loading as low as 13 ppb. This result demonstrates a beneficial effect of tin on palladium in catalysis.